Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. (NASDAQ:BLMN – Get Rating) Director Elizabeth A. Smith sold 203,032 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $22.93, for a total transaction of $4,655,523.76. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 243,594 shares in the company, valued at $5,585,610.42. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Bloomin’ Brands Stock Up 2.2 %

Shares of BLMN traded up $0.49 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $23.19. The stock had a trading volume of 1,218,189 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,788,710. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $21.27 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $20.24. Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. has a 1-year low of $15.89 and a 1-year high of $25.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.42, a current ratio of 0.30 and a quick ratio of 0.21. The company has a market cap of $2.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.15 and a beta of 1.88.

Bloomin’ Brands (NASDAQ:BLMN – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 28th. The restaurant operator reported $0.35 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.34 by $0.01. Bloomin’ Brands had a net margin of 2.39% and a return on equity of 92.10%. The firm had revenue of $1.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.05 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.57 EPS. Bloomin’ Brands’ revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that Bloomin’ Brands, Inc. will post 2.46 earnings per share for the current year.

Bloomin’ Brands Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 23rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, November 9th will be paid a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 8th. This represents a $0.56 annualized dividend with a yield of 2.41%. Bloomin’ Brands dividend payout ratio is currently 59.58%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Bloomin’ Brands

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. BlackRock Inc. raised its stake in Bloomin’ Brands by 13.0% during the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 15,152,121 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $332,436,000 after acquiring an additional 1,747,152 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Bloomin’ Brands by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 9,842,684 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $180,417,000 after acquiring an additional 291,981 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its position in Bloomin’ Brands by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 5,949,443 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $98,880,000 after purchasing an additional 323,248 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in Bloomin’ Brands by 4.4% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 3,228,458 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $59,178,000 after purchasing an additional 136,714 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its position in Bloomin’ Brands by 16.0% during the 3rd quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 2,927,286 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $53,657,000 after purchasing an additional 404,708 shares during the last quarter.

Analysts set new price targets

BLMN has been the topic of a number of research reports. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of Bloomin’ Brands in a report on Wednesday, October 12th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $20.00 to $25.00 in a report on Monday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Bloomin’ Brands in a report on Wednesday, November 2nd. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Bloomin’ Brands from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 31st. Finally, TheStreet upgraded shares of Bloomin’ Brands from a “c” rating to a “b-” rating in a report on Friday, October 28th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $27.89.

About Bloomin’ Brands

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Bloomin’ Brands, Inc., through its subsidiaries, owns and operates casual, upscale casual, and fine dining restaurants in the United States and internationally. The company operates through two segments, US and International. Its restaurant portfolio has four concepts, including Outback Steakhouse, a casual steakhouse restaurant; Carrabba’s Italian Grill, a casual Italian restaurant; bonefish grill; and Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse & Wine Bar, a contemporary steakhouse.

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